Joke's On You
by Zofie C. Field
Summary: It's April Fools' Day at the 12th.
1. Chapter 1

_The April Fools' Day follow-up to Irish Lass_

_Note: None of these characters are mine_

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**Joke's On You**

"You bought seat covers?" Castle was peering through the window of Beckett's car.

"After that kid puked in here on the way to the station last week, I figured better safe than sorry," Beckett shrugged, clearing papers off the front seat.

Castle opened the passenger side door and leaned in to examine the seat covers. "Eeewww, but Beckett, they're vinyl," he whined. "Let me buy you something in leather?"

"Get in the car, Castle. We have a murderer to arrest."

"I'd like to murder these seat covers," Castle grumbled as he climbed into the car, eyeballing the seat covers skeptically.

As they pulled up to the curb where Ryan and Esposito were waiting, Beckett turned to Castle. "Castle, this guy is dangerous. I want you to stay in the car."

"Yup, sure. I won't move a muscle," Castle said, as he unbuckled his seatbelt and opened his door. He started to swing his legs out of the car, only to find himself tugged back into the seat. He tried again, using the doorframe to pull himself up. He made about two inches of progress, struggled for a moment, and then flopped back into the seat.

Confused, Castle glanced up to see Beckett standing next to his door watching him with amusement. "I told you to stay in the car." Castle gaped at her, understanding dawning in his eyes.

"You glued me to the seat," he said, with a hint of awe.

"Happy April Fools', Castle." She threw him a wink and sauntered off towards Ryan and Esposito, leaving him to watch her walk away.

Twenty minutes later, they were headed back to the precinct. In the time it took Beckett to catch a murderer, Castle had twisted his body in every way he could think of, and had only succeeded in freeing one corner of the seat cover. As they pulled into the precinct, he turned to Beckett.

"I'm very impressed, Detective. I especially liked the a-kid-puked-in-my-car-so-I-bought-hideous-seat-covers backstory. That was very sly. Now will you please help me get out of here?"

"Giving up so soon, Castle? What would Jameson Rook do?" With a grin and one more wink (Castle was pretty sure he'd stay glued to her car forever if it meant she'd keep winking at him) Beckett climbed out of the car and headed into the station.

Beckett had just barely sat down at her desk, when the elevator pinged. She looked up to see Castle proudly parading through the precinct, with her vinyl seat cover still firmly adhered to the seat of his trousers.

"Hey Castle! That's a nice look for you bro! It really suits you," Esposito shouted at Castle as he walked by. Ryan was clutching his chest, laughing so hard he could barely breathe.

Castle stopped at Beckett's desk. "Beckett, can I talk to you for a second in the break room?"

"Uh, yeah, sure, Castle," Becket said, worried that she'd taken her prank a little bit too far.

Beckett grabbed her coffee mug, and moved to stand. Her chair moved with her. Understanding instantly, she slumped back in the seat and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She should have seen this coming.

"Detective," Castle's deep voice rumbled in her ear and her eyes snapping open. "You didn't honestly think you were the only one with a tube of superglue, did you?"

"Castle," she said quietly, trying not to draw attention to herself. "How am I supposed to get out of this?"

"I don't know, Beckett. What would Nikki Heat do?" Castle whispered (Beckett thinks she'd happily stay glued to her chair forever if he'd keep whispering in her ear). He grabbed her coffee mug and headed towards the break room, the vinyl seat cover still trailing along behind him like a bridal train.

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_Thanks for reading (and for kindly overlooking the liberties I took with the physical and chemical properties of superglue)!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks to __**Heidiho16**__, for the image of Castle in his underwear._

_Note: None of these characters are mine._

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Beckett managed to keep her situation under wraps for the rest of the day. She was pretty sure Esposito figured it out, but he tactfully didn't call attention to it. Chances are he and Ryan would have a good laugh about it over drinks that evening.

Beckett waited until the precinct was empty except for her and Castle. Castle had stuck close to her all day, quietly gloating with questions like, "Would you like another cup of coffee Beckett? I could get it for you if you don't feel like getting up."

Castle stood and stretched. "I believe, Detective, it's time to call it a day." He grabbed a pair of scissors out of her desk drawer and handed them to her. "Would you mind cutting me loose? Just snip off the extra vinyl. Alexis will never let me live it down if she sees me this!" He turned his back to Beckett, presenting his backside and several yards of vinyl, and completely missing the maniacal grin that flashed across her face.

With careful precision, Beckett started cutting at Castle's back pocket and began to snip along the seam where the vinyl was adhered to his pants. Two minutes later she sat back and surveyed her work, satisfied. "You're all set, Castle. It's barely noticeable. Have a good night."

"Can't I return the favor, Detective?" Castle winked. "You can't stay in that chair all night."

"Ha, no thanks, Castle. Lanie's coming to help me in a minute."

"Alright. Happy April Fools' Day, Beckett. You've proven yourself a formidable prank opponent. I'm going to start planning for next year!" With a bow and a gleeful little hop, Castle headed towards the elevator.

Beckett watched him walk away, allowing herself a girl moment to enjoy the sight. The large hole in his pants, where she'd carefully snipped away the material, revealed his blue plaid boxers and highlighted his assets quite nicely. She smiled to herself. The score definitely wasn't even, but her last little bit of revenge helped.

Once the elevator doors had closed, Beckett glanced around to double check that she was alone. She shut her eyes, and leaned back in the chair, groaning a little. Lanie wasn't coming. There was no way Kate was going to let anyone witness what was about to transpire.

During lunch, Kate had made her first attempt at freedom. When the boys had all been distracted, Beckett had tried to cut herself out of her chair. She'd managed to cut along one side of the seat, but when she reached the back of the chair, she'd quickly realized that it wasn't going to work. She couldn't quirk her wrist enough to cut through thick faux-leather behind her. Later that afternoon, when Castle had gone into the break room for a cup of coffee, she'd made her second attempt at escape. She'd quickly tried to cut through her own pants, finding that she was glued in such a way that she couldn't reach behind her to cut the seat of her pants. She had another plan for freeing herself, but she'd had to wait until now. This was a plan to be executed in private.

Kate slipped off her shoes. She reached under the seat, and reclined the back of the chair as much as far as it would go. She stretched her toes and locked the chair's wheels with her foot. Checking once again that she was completely alone, she unbuttoned her slacks and pulled the zipper down. Leaning back and pushing up off the arms of the chair, Beckett hoisted herself up. It took three tries and a lot of wiggling, but Beckett finally managed to free her hips. She pulled her knees up, and slipped out of her pants, plopping down softly in the seat.

Sigh of relief. Free at last.

After taking a moment to collect herself, Beckett stood and bent to riffle through her drawers, looking for the spare pair of gym shorts she could have sworn she'd thrown in there. She could sneak down to the gym locker room if she really needed to, but she was hoping to avoid that trip. Her fingers closed on cotton shorts, and she chuckled slightly in relief, imagining herself sneaking down the stairs to the gym in her present state.

"Very funny, Detective. I just gave the young woman in the front desk quite the risqué show."

In shock, Beckett shot up from behind the desk, coming face to face with Castle, who had just stepped off the elevator.

Castle's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. Beckett stood behind her desk in her blazer, blouse, red lace panties, and bare legs a mile long.

For what felt like a decade (but couldn't have been more than a fraction of a second) they stared at each other.

In an instant, the shock wore off, and Beckett dove behind her desk with an alarmed "Castle!" She sat on the floor, struggling to pull on the gym shorts, which had been lying forgotten in her hand.

"Best. April. Fool's. EVER!" Beckett could hear the gleeful smile in Castle's voice.

Beckett closed her eyes, expecting to be angry, but surprised herself as she felt a chuckle bubble up through her. She leaned her head back, resting it against the desk, as the laughter overtook her. The stress of a day spent glued to a chair leaked out of her as she laughed and laughed, tears streaming out of her eyes.

Struggling to catch her breath, she looked up to see Castle extending a hand towards her.

"Beckett, I think it's time we call a truce, at least for a while. Let me take you out to dinner?" He was still grinning like mad, but his eyes were kind.

Wiping her eyes, she took his hand and let him pull her up off the ground. Still holding hands, they headed towards the elevator – Beckett in her gym shorts, blazer and high heels, and Castle in his seatless pants and boxers.

A very happy April Fools' Day indeed.

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_Thanks for reading!_


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